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Is my car insured? How to check for free

Every insured car in the UK is listed on the Motor Insurance Database (MID). You can check your own car for free in under a minute — here's how, and what to do if something looks wrong.

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Locking a silver hatchback on the driveway of a brick house

Check your car on askMID

  • Go to askmid.com — the free public enquiry service run by the Motor Insurers' Bureau.
  • Enter your car's registration number and confirm you own the vehicle.
  • The result tells you whether the car currently appears on the MID as insured.

The free check is for your own vehicle only. If you've had an accident and need to check another driver's car, askMID offers a separate paid enquiry for that.

If your car doesn't show up

  • Just bought a policy? New policies can take a few days to appear on the database. Check the start date and time on your documents first.
  • Check the registration. A single wrong letter means no match — re-enter it carefully.
  • Contact your insurer or broker. If the policy should be live, ask them to update the MID and confirm in writing.
  • Don't drive until it's sorted. The police use the same database for roadside checks.

The rules on driving uninsured

  • It's illegal to drive — or keep — a car on public roads without at least third party insurance, under Continuous Insurance Enforcement rules.
  • The penalty can be a fixed fine of £300 and 6 penalty points, and if it goes to court the fine is unlimited with possible disqualification.
  • Police can seize, and in some cases destroy, an uninsured vehicle.
  • If the car is kept off the road entirely, you can declare it SORN with the DVLA instead of insuring it.

Check tax and MOT at the same time

The DVLA's free vehicle enquiry service at gov.uk/check-vehicle-tax shows a car's tax and MOT status from its registration number. It's worth checking all three — insurance, tax and MOT — together, especially when buying a used car.

Not insured yet?

If the check shows no cover and you need a policy, compare insurers before you buy. Cover levels, excesses and extras vary widely even at similar prices.

Before you buy

Our listings are dated snapshots of providers' own pages, not live prices. Always check the price, contract length and terms on the provider's website. Nothing here is financial or insurance advice.

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